Case Study: Jesus Hospital refurbishment project

If a charity does not have sufficient funds to carry our necessary works to their almshouses, part of the service The Almshouse Association offers its member charities is financial help in the forms of grants and loans.

In 2023 Q4, the Association received a grant request from Jesus Hospital, and we were pleased to be able to provide a grant of ÂŁ2,000 towards the refurbishment of one of their flats.

As the keys were handed over to a very happy new resident, new warden, David Roper, shares their story with us:

The 1595 building with chapel (below the clock)

The ‘Hospital’, or almshouses, was founded in 1595 by Sir John Boys, who had made his fortune in law, for 8 poor men and 4 poor women, known as ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters‘. He had perhaps been inspired by Sir Roger Manwood’s foundation set up 20 or so years before. He also set up a school for boys.

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Today there are 14 flats which can provide homes for 19 people over the age of 55 on low incomes who live in the Canterbury area. There is an on-site warden and residents benefit from a communal garden and all within easy walking distance of shops, doctor’s surgery, restaurants, and a cinema. In recent years the Weekly Maintenance Contribution (WMC) had been kept quite low and the trustees had limited access to investment funds. In April 2023 the resident warden retired and the present warden took up his post on 1 October 2023.

In the latter part of 2022, an elderly resident developed increasingly difficult health issues and sadly, after many years as a resident, needed to move into a care home in June 2023. It was a difficult situation to manage at the time, especially without a warden in post.

After assessing the condition of the vacant flat, the trustees realised that a substantial refurbishment was required before a new resident could be invited to move in. The flat needed decorating throughout, plus a new kitchen and bathroom. Fortunately, the carpets came up well with a deep clean so did not require renewing.

There was a lovely surprise when the old kitchen was stripped out – they found a tiny fire hearth hiding behind the units, though coal allowance is no longer a resident benefit!

Once the contractors had finished, a working party of residents enjoyed a happy day cleaning windows and revarnishing the window frames which provided both an enjoyable social event for the community and a considerable cost saving.

The total cost of the project including loss of WMC (flat was vacant for 8 months whilst renovations where undertaken), council tax liability and utilities came to ÂŁ19,000.

Jesus Hospital now has a new resident who received her keys in March 2024 and is very happy to have joined the community.


Click here to find out how you can help us support almshouse charities build new and renovate older almshouses, ensuring safe, warm and affordable homes in friendly communities are available for people who need them for many years to come.